Kei Lehigh’s letter noting that the proud history of the Republican Party is one of abolishing slavery, unifying the nation, expanding the right to vote and supporting the 1964 Civil Rights Act brings into stark relief the current direction of the GOP. Can Lehigh explain why today’s GOP has apparently performed a complete about-face on these principles in just the last 40 years?

Harry Doby, Aurora

This letter was published in the March 16 edition.

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Letter-writer James DeGregori wrote that conservatives were wrong on slavery, women’s voting rights and civil rights.

Republicans opposed expansion of slavery and fought for it to be overturned, with a Republican president guiding the Civil War. Republicans wrote the 19th Amendment allowing women to vote, and Republicans in the House supported the 1964 Civil Rights Act 80 percent to 63 percent for Democrats and 82 percent to 69 percent in the Senate.

Both parties are significantly different than they have been in the recent past, but please learn history before making politically based talking-points-only comments.

Kei Lehigh, Highlands Ranch

This letter was published in the March 9 edition.

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Thanks for the article on what might be one of the truly historic cemeteries in the Rocky Mountain states. For the benefit of other New Mexico transplants, mention could be made of Miguel Antonio Otero, a prominent New Mexico politician and businessman for whom Otero County in Colorado is named. His burial site at Riverside, along with several relatives, is marked by a significant monument.

The burial ceremony in June 1882 was conducted by the Masonic Lodge after Bishop Joseph Machebeuf refused to allow a burial Mass at the Roman Catholic parish because Otero was a Mason.

Mark Thompson, Centennial

This letter was published in the Aug. 8 edition.

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Tom Noel points out the long history and recent burgeoning of wineries and breweries in Colorado. Add to that cider. Production of “hard” (fermented) cider is fast growing across the United States, and Colorado is no exception. Whereas a few years ago Colorado had just one cidery (Blossomwood in Cedaredge), now there are four licensed and three more in planning … that we know of.

Cider apples can be grown in many more regions of Colorado than wine grapes. Our climate and abundant sunshine produce exceptional fruit for cider. Of course, this is a local product, produced from orchards that protect and even enhance the land.

Cider has a story to tell Colorado.

Dick Dunn, Hygiene

The writer is president of the Rocky Mountain Cider Association.

This letter was published in the June 30 edition.

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Field Director Charles White of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People speaks at a podium outside the U.S. Supreme Court building on June 25 in Washington, D.C. The court ruled that Section 4 of the Voting Rights Act, which aimed at protecting minority voters, is unconstitutional. (Win McNamee, Getty Images)

Today I am ashamed of my country. I am ashamed that four white men and — hold your breath — one black man undid one of the greatest acts of Congress in our history: the Voting Rights Act of 1965. These five men fail to understand history and the blood of those who have gone before who died for justice and fairness in a society that even today is increasingly deaf to the voices of the poor, the unemployed and the disenfranchised.

Perhaps these five men and those who support their actions never heard of Emmett Till or Medgar Evers. Perhaps they did not see the long lines of black men and women waiting to vote last November as restrictive voting hour laws and phony voter fraud ID laws made voting harder for those with the least power. Or could it be that declaring victory over the past is a way to erase history and blind oneself from the truth?

In a society less upwardly mobile than in 1965 when the Voting Rights Act became law, it is shocking that corporatists like U.S. Supreme Court Justices Antonin Scalia, John Roberts and Samuel Alito continue their assault on the open society necessary for democracy. It will take a new civil rights movement to fashion fairness and access and undo the damage these men have brought us.

Bill J. Fyfe, Denver

This letter was published in the June 27 edition.

Funny how changing times justify boys in girls’ restrooms, gay marriage (which I support), amnesty for illegals, and so many other liberal causes, but questioning an outmoded voting law or the need for race-based preferences is called an outrage. Laws protecting minorities were necessary and proper, once. They are no longer necessary or proper. All the bleating about continued racism in America is knee-jerk pap, which insults pioneers of all races who worked so hard and sacrificed so much to make America one of the least racist nations on the planet. Let us celebrate our progress, not continue to denigrate our past and hold ourselves to standards which simply no longer apply. And, no, we’re not perfect; but the Supreme Court decision on the Voting Rights Act has nothing to do with social mores, just whether we discriminate in voting. And, please, stop carping on Republicans: Democrats are using this antiquated law for political, not social reasons. Let’s move on, shall we?

Anthony T. Accetta, Denver

This letter was published in the June 27 edition.

With Tuesday’s 5-4 Supreme Court decision, which essentially overturned Section 4 of the 1965 Voting Rights Act, red-state Republicans, having heretofore focused their attention on the passage of endless measures to repeal or obstruct implementation of the Affordable Care Act, may now demonstrate that they are also capable of creating a vast array of innovative voter suppression measures, and thereby shed their reputation of being merely “one-trick elephants.”

Frank Tapy, Denver

This letter was published in the June 27 edition.

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Guidelines: The Post welcomes letters up to 150 words on topics of general interest. Letters must include full name, home address, day and evening phone numbers, and may be edited for length, grammar and accuracy.

To reach the Denver Post editorial page by phone: 303-954-1331

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